Skates & Ski Boots are not the friendliest footwear for your feet!
It's natural for your feet to feel sore after a day on the ice or slopes. Boots and skates are definitely not designed for comfort or to support the human gait. But that doesn't mean you have to grin and bear the pain!
You can focus on the fun of your winter activities - and not the foot pain - by doing the following:
Get a proper fit. Poorly fitting skates or ski boots can impair your ability to skate or ski and cause blisters, stress fractures, ankle and foot pain, and many other issues.
Break in your footwear. Skates and boots are necessarily tighter-fitting than other footwear. While they should feel better after your first few runs on the slopes or laps around the rink, you might be able to help them along. Wearing them off and on when you're not skating/skiing, should naturally stretch the inner liner.
Get an insole. To keep toes from crashing into the front of your boot/skate, insoles (also called footbeds, which sounds so nice) can be used to stabilize any excessive motion and help control your foot movements. Footbeds can also result in improved control, reduced fatigue, and more comfort.
Incorporate some foot drills. Warm up the feet with exercises that activate the core muscles located in these important limbs. You can check out some suggestions on the Foot-Joy Reflexology YouTube channel.
